Brown Butter Banana Blondies

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Last Updated on September 30, 2020 by Chenée Lewis

Today we are making BROWN BUTTER BANANA BLONDIES! Is it me, or is that the most delicious four words ever written in the English language? And if that wasn’t enough, did I mention we’re topping this banana blondies recipe with a cream cheese icing made with — you guessed it — more brown butter?!

My love affair with brown butter is well-documented in the short time this blog has been in existence. But what you may not know is that brown butter and banana is maybe the best combination of all time. I first made this discovery with my banana cake recipe, and since then I’ve been obsessed!

Blondies <3

Maybe you aren’t a big fan of blonde brownie (blondies) recipes. Or maybe you prefer chocolate brownies (I don’t blame you, actually). Maybe my raspberry white chocolate blondies didn’t successfully convert you. Well, if you aren’t a #blondiebeliever yet, this fudgy, chewy, buttery banana bread blondies recipe will definitely do the trick!

Recipes for blondies are a lot like brownies, but with a base flavor of vanilla, rather than chocolate. They can be made with white chocolate, butterscotch, caramel, and even chocolate chips, and they can be adapted in lots of different ways! That’s what’s so amazing about recipes for blondies — they can bring the flavors of all of your favorite desserts to the classic rich, chewy texture you love about brownies.

Which brings me to this brown butter banana blondies recipe. As we are all deep into the banana bread rabbit hole these days, I had a pile of overripe bananas in my kitchen, begging to be used. And so these brown butter banana blondies were born!

Ingredients

These brown butter banana blondies are pretty easy to throw together! You don’t need a stand mixer, or even a handheld mixer! I made these blondies with just a whisk and a few steps! But let’s start with the ingredients you’ll need do make these brown butter blondies:

• baking spray – I like to use Pam for Baking, or any other baking spray that contains flour.
• brown butter – you’ll need to brown butter all at once for the blondies AND for the brown butter cream cheese frosting. If you need step by step instructions on how to brown butter, check out this post!
• white chocolate chips – you can also use chunks of white baking chocolate. These will give your blondies that fudgy, chewy texture and so much flavor!
• egg – make sure your egg is room temperature – see below for a quick tip to help get it to room temperature quickly!
• 1 cup light brown sugar – packed (198g)
• 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
• ½ cup mashed overripe banana – about 1 medium banana
• 1 cup all-purpose flour – 128g
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• ¼ teaspoon salt

Brown Butter Cream Cheese Frosting

• ¼ cup brown butter – (from above)
• 4 oz cream cheese – softened to room temperature
• 8 oz powdered sugar – 112g
• ½ tsp pure vanilla extract
• ¼ tsp ground cinnamon – optional

The most complicated part of this recipe is browning the butter, which is actually totally doable! Check here for step-by-step details on how to brown butter! It’s so easy and makes all the difference, especially in baking!

Once you have your brown butter, the rest is super straightforward. All you do is:

1. Melt your white chocolate into your brown butter
2. Mix your egg, brown sugar, vanilla, cinnamon, and salt together.
3. Add in the cooled butter and chocolate mixture, then your mashed banana.
4. Finally, fold in your flour, and you’re ready to bake!

Then comes my favorite part — the frosting! For this recipe, we’re using the same brown butter cream cheese frosting from my stout gingerbread cookies. You can whip that up easily once the blondies are cooled.

Don’t forget to set out your cream cheese to soften while the blondies are in the oven, and it’ll be ready to go into your frosting by the time the blondies are done cooling!

I hope you love this brown butter banana blondies recipe! Are you a #blondiebeliever yet??? Let me know in the comments below how it turned out for you, and tag me on Instagram with #cheneetoday. I can’t wait to see your results!

Tips for the best brown butter banana blondies

Get your eggs and cream cheese to room temperature fast! To warm up eggs to room temperature quickly, I like to just place them in a bowl with slightly warm water for about 15 minutes. At that point, they should not longer be noticeably cool. To soften cream cheese, just take it out of the foil and heat in the microwave for 15-20 seconds!

Line your baking pan and leave an overhang! This step is so easy, but lining your pan with parchment paper and letting some of it extend off the sides helps you remove your brownies all at once from the pan to make frosting, slicing, and serving much easier!

Browning butter. Check out my brown butter appreciation post for more details and step-by-step instructions, but in an nutshell, here’s how to brown the butter for this banana blondies recipe! Just cut a stick and a half of salted butter into cubes or slices and heat over medium heat in a light-colored pan, stirring often. The butter should melt and start to foam; keep stirring and watch it carefully. Once the milk solids at the bottom begin to turn golden brown, it’s ready! Immediately remove it to a heatproof container and let it cool a bit. In this recipe, you’ll then remove 1/4 cup of the brown butter to cool for the frosting later!

Related Recipes

So we’ve established that my blog is full of amazing brown butter recipes for you to try! But if you like these banana blondies you should definitely check out my banana pecan pancakes — they’re full of ripe banana and toasted pecans, and topped with a maple brown butter glaze that is to die for.

But if you’re looking for the ultimate fall treat with the goodness of brown butter AND pumpkin? Look no further than my pumpkin pecan cinnamon rolls with brown butter cream cheese icing! They’re big, soft, gooey, and irresistible!

Brown Butter Banana Blondies

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Recipe for how to make chewy homemade brown butter banana brownie blondies — like banana bread, but better! Brown butter banana blondies topped with a rich brown butter cream cheese icing makes these one of the best recipes for blondies!

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 30 minutes

Total Time: 1 hour

Course: Dessert, Snack

Cuisine :American

Servings: 16 bars

Calories: 259kcal

Recipe Source: Chenée Lewis

Equipment you may need

9×9 baking pan

parchment paper

rubber spatula

whisk

hand mixer

stand mixer

offset spatula

Ingredients

1x2x3x

• baking spray – (the kind with flour)
• ¾ cup brown butter – divided
• ½ cup white chocolate chips
• 1 large egg
• 1 cup light brown sugar – packed (198g)
• 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
• ½ cup mashed overripe banana – about 1 medium banana
• 1 cup all-purpose flour – 128g
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• ¼ teaspoon salt

Brown Butter Cream Cheese Frosting

• ¼ cup brown butter – (from above)
• 4 oz cream cheese – softened to room temperature
• 8 oz powdered sugar – 112g
• ½ tsp pure vanilla extract
• ¼ tsp ground cinnamon – optional

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease a 9×9 baking pan with baking spray and line with parchment paper, leaving an overhang to remove blondies easily from pan.
• Brown 3/4 butter (see note), and pour ¼ cup of browned butter into a separate container and place into refrigerator to cool.
• Add white chocolate to remaining ½ cup of warm browned butter and stir until melted and smooth. If necessary, heat in microwave for 15-30 seconds to melt. Let cool.
• Whisk together egg, brown sugar, vanilla, cinnamon and salt in a medium bowl until smooth, stirring well after each addition.
• Whisk in the cooled butter and white chocolate mixture, and then stir in the mashed banana.
• Fold in flour until combined. Spread the batter into 9×9 baking pan and smooth the top.
• Bake at 350 for 25-30 minutes, until a toothpick in the center of the pan comes out clean. Allow to cool in pan for at least 10 minutes before removing to cool completely.

Brown Butter Cream Cheese Frosting

• Allow reserved cooled ¼ cup brown butter to come to room temperature.
• Using a hand mixer, whip brown butter with softened cream cheese until creamy. Mix in cinnamon and vanilla.
• Gradually beat in powdered sugar until fully incorporated and frosting is smooth and creamy. If desired, beat another 2-3 minutes for a fluffier texture.
• Spread over cooled blondies, slice and serve!

Notes

Browning butter. Check out my brown butter appreciation post for more details and step-by-step instructions, but in an nutshell, here’s how to brown the butter for this banana blondies recipe! Just cut a stick and a half of salted butter into cubes or slices and heat over medium heat in a light-colored pan, stirring often. The butter should melt and start to foam; keep stirring and watch it carefully. Once the milk solids at the bottom begin to turn golden brown, it’s ready! Immediately remove it to a heatproof container and let it cool a bit. In this recipe, you’ll then remove 1/4 cup of the brown butter to cool for the frosting later!

Storing: The blondies can be stored in the refrigerator in an airtight container for up to 5 days, or in the freezer for up to two months.

Nutrition

Serving: 1bar | Calories: 259kcal | Carbohydrates: 34g | Protein: 2g | Fat: 13g | Saturated Fat: 8g | Cholesterol: 43mg | Sodium: 129mg | Potassium: 70mg | Fiber: 0.5g | Sugar: 27g | Calcium: 30mg | Iron: 1mg

Nutrition Disclaimer

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